National championship victory rewards teen acrobat's determination

Published 7:00 pm, Wednesday, August 20, 2003

But Justin Spigener once expected to find athletic glory on the football field, not the sidelines.

"When I was little, my parents kind of threw me into (gymnastics)," Spigener said. "Then, I quit to play football, and that turned out to be a bad move. I tried other sports, but it never worked out."

Now that Spigener has won a silver medal for his acrobatic skills, he says he couldn't be more satisfied with his decision to put the helmet and shoulder pads away several years ago.

By CORTNEY MARTIN

Spigener - a strong, athletic 17-year-old - doesn't fit the stereotypical portrait of male acrobats and cheerleaders, but he has proven himself to be a worthy competitor in the year since he was first introduced to acrobatics.

With his partner, Victoria Clifton, Spigener returned from the Sports Acrobatics National Championship in Jacksonville, Fla. earlier this month with the silver medal in the Level VIII mixed pairs division for ages 14 - 17.

This accomplishment follows two first place wins for Spigener and Clifton - one at the state competition in Dallas and another at the regional level in Louisiana.

It is a hard-earned reward for Spigener, who travels to Crosby's Texas Sports Ranch three to four times a week to work out. On nights he doesn't train for acrobatics, he coaches children at Dynamic Gymnastics in Pasadena.

"It started out just for fun, but I don't know where it's going to go now. I'll take it as far as I can," Spigener said of his dedication to acrobatics.

Spigener was re-introduced to gymnastics when he began working at a now-closed Deer Park gym, Acrobats in Motion. There, he met some Pasadena High School football players who urged him to join a competitive cheerleading squad.

His experiences with that squad sparked his interest in acrobatics, which Spigener said is a popular option among former gymnasts who have physically outgrown the sport.

Spigener partnered with Clifton, one of his younger sister's former gymnastics classmates, because their similar heights made them compatible as an acrobatics team.

"You get to interact more with others in acrobatics, while gymnastics is something you do by yourself. This is more like Cirque Du Soleil," Spigener said.

Competition season for acrobatics lasts from February to August, but that doesn't mean it will leave a vacancy in Spigener's schedule for the next several months.

On top of his other commitments, he will continue practicing acrobatics with fierce determination to improve his performance. There are 10 levels of skill for acrobats, he said, and the pair is about to advance to the ninth level.

Spigener has equal reason to be proud of a recent accomplishment in cheerleading, an activity that has begun demanding more of his time since the school year has started.

After three years of competitive cheerleading and two years on his high school squad, he has been named to the All-Star Cheerleading Team at Texas A&M University camp.

Spigener has no intention of leaving cheerleading and acrobatics behind once he finishes high school in May. Once he turns 18, he will be in the adult division for competitive acrobatics, in which the competition is even steeper.

"There are a lot more people between the ages of 19 and 24 who do this," Spigener said. "There's a lot of competition among 20-somethings."